In less than 48 hours 2016 will be in the history books. No time left to reflect, it’s time to get moving into the New Year ahead and make the most of every day and every opportunity.
I’m often asked ‘what are the key things that a dentist should do or be ready for to put themselves on track for record results and increasing profits out their practice?’
Usually someone poses the question in a way that implies they are searching for “the one thing” “the magic pill” “the silver bullet” or even the “easy button.” They are hoping there is some revolutionary answer that will make all the difference.
Good news… There is not.
And I say good news because why on earth would you want there to be ‘one thing’ that anyone else could use or copy completely. Essentially commoditizing what you do and making your existence irrelevant (certainly not special or unique).
Success isn’t easy… that’s why so few people actually ever achieve it or do anything of great magnitude. Even when they and you get to make up your own definition of success; most still never even come close.
So today, I bring you not one, two or even three but five key ‘New Year Success Tactics’ that will work for you all throughout the year. Now, these are not easy buttons or quick fixes. They require effort but will pay substantial dividends.
These are usually overlooked and underutilized, when in fact they are some of the most critical components of a successful practice. If you stay focused on these and master the execution, their impact can be incredibly successful and have momentum that will continue to compound for you.
1st – Your goals
I know it is seems so simply stated but without goals you can be sure you won’t hit them. They are important and not just for you but for your team. And the real secret isn’t in coming up with a number but determining what success you want to achieve and then working it backwards.
Example: it’s crazy to me that every single day in your practice you are not pushing hard to find an extra $1,000, $3,000, $7,000, or $10,000 or more of cash. When you have so many team members who would each, in their own way, be able to secure an extra grand a piece during the day that would net you nearly $1,000,000 having just five people in your practice.
Why don’t more people think like this? Anyhow, have a goal; one that is specific, defined and significant, one that motivates you and that you really want.
2nd – Rewards
If you do not, right now today, have rewards both for yourself and for your team members that they will achieve if you hit your goals then you are not running a real business and not managing a real team.
Employees show up and punch the clock, get paid either way. You don’t want employees; you want dedicated, career-driven team members. Often dentists treat themselves as employees when they are actually the owner and work for themselves.
People need to be motivated. No way around it and you shouldn’t want it to be different. Motivation and goals tie into rewards and drive performance.
3rd – Diagnosis and Case Acceptance
You must know what your daily diagnosis and your average new patient diagnosis is. You must know, based on those numbers, how much treatment is accepted on the first visit, second visit, first 30 days, first 90 days, first 12 months of the patient relationship.
If you do not know these numbers and work hard to make them better, bigger and more consistent, then you are filling up a bucket with water that has holes in it. Yielding a lot of wasted profits as they leak out the bottom.
This is everyone’s responsibility but it starts at the top. And if the doctor isn’t obsessed over these numbers then no one else will be either.
4th – Revenue/Treatment per Team Member
In their own way, every single team member touches the flow of money, patients and treatment in your office and you should know how productive each person is. How much they are worth to you.
Every person must have a return on investment for the time and compensation in your practice.
You can’t really know what’s going on, what’s going well and what’s not working without knowing this. This is the point of my Five Bucket System for tracking. And why it works is because it drives column by column and patient by patient accountability for each team member.
When you get this deep into your practice, you will see amazing ways to have powerful breakthroughs by leveraging your people and their skills to help achieve more of the first three items listed.
5th – Set Training and Development Priorities
Last but not least (and I could continue making a list but five is enough to focus on for now), I want you to commit to specific priorities of improvement that you know you and your team need to work on.
I find it so absolutely ridiculous when someone says to me “Well we use to take pictures but we don’t do it all the time.” What does that mean; you don’t take pictures with every patient? Okay, well if someone isn’t taking pictures then they are not worth as much during that patient’s visit, so there should be some penalty.
Or everyone could just choose to be a professional that follows the system and the protocol in order to achieve the results and goals everyone has agreed to.
The point is: whatever your top 2 or 3 priorities are that you want to go to work on and improve inside of your practice, plan it – commit to it – make it happen.
This list is important because the point is to master one and then move on to the next and keep going through as many priorities as possible. You will of course have to practice and refresh on each critical item regularly, but for now start with the big ones that you know would lead to a better and more complete experience for your patients and treatment acceptance.
As we turn the corner on another year, I want to thank you for being here. There are exciting times ahead. We will have the greatest year in the history of dentistry next year, that I will promise you.
I will leave you with more than just a ‘Happy New Year’ wish because I believe we decide and make our own happiness and prosperity in the new year. Instead I will leave you with my favorite saying that I have sitting on my desk and look at every day…
Stay Focused.
Stay Hungry.
If you do those two things, you will keep your edge and may even surprise yourself with all you are able to accomplish. Especially when you have these five things dialed in and you are focusing on the right things and the highest and best use of yours and everyone else’s time, energy, effort, investment and expertise.
All I have to say is… 2017… go get ‘em!! And make the most of the amazing gift of a New Year.
